Perkins, Frances

Perkins, Frances
orig. Fannie Coralie Perkins

born April 10, 1882, Boston, Mass., U.S.
died May 14, 1965, New York, N.Y.

U.S. public official.

She became a social worker in New York City and a leader in organizations aiming to improve working conditions for women. From 1929 to 1933 she served as state industrial commissioner under New York Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt. As president, Roosevelt appointed her U.S. secretary of labor; she thereby became the first woman to hold a U.S. cabinet post. In her long term of office (1933–45) she advocated reforms such as a minimum wage, a maximum workweek, and unemployment compensation; she also helped draft the Social Security Act and supervised the Fair Labor Standards Act (1938). She was later a U.S. Civil Service commissioner (1945–53).

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▪ United States secretary of labor
original name  Fannie Coralie Perkins 
born April 10, 1882, Boston, Mass., U.S.
died May 14, 1965, New York, N.Y.
 U.S. secretary of labor during the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt (Roosevelt, Franklin D.). Besides being the first woman to be appointed to a cabinet post, she also served one of the longest terms of any Roosevelt appointee (1933–45).

      Perkins graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1902 and for some years taught school and served as a social worker. She worked briefly with Jane Addams (Addams, Jane) at Hull House in Chicago and then resumed her studies, first at the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce of the University of Pennsylvania and then at Columbia University, where she took an M.A. in social economics in 1910. From that year until 1912 she was executive secretary of the Consumers' League of New York. In that position she lobbied successfully for improved wages and working conditions, especially for women and children. From 1912 to 1917 she was executive secretary of the New York Committee on Safety and from 1917 to 1919 executive director of the New York Council of Organization for War Service. She was appointed in 1919 to New York's State Industrial Commission by Governor Alfred E. Smith, and in 1923 she was named to the State Industrial Board, of which she became chairman in 1926. Smith's successor, Franklin D. Roosevelt, appointed Perkins state industrial commissioner in 1929. She was, both before and after the onset of the Great Depression of the 1930s, a strong advocate of unemployment insurance and close government supervision of fiscal policy.

      When Roosevelt entered the presidency in 1933 he named Perkins secretary of labor, making her the first woman to serve in a cabinet position. After the initial controversy of her appointment died away she settled into a 12-year term of effective administration of her department. She pushed for a minimum wage and maximum workweek, a limit on employment of children under 16, creation of the Civilian Conservation Corps, and unemployment compensation—all of which were enacted. She helped draft the Social Security Act and supervised the Fair Labor Standards Act (1938). When the focus of labour activity shifted in the late 1930s from government to unions, Perkins played a less visible role. Her most important work was then the building up of the Department of Labor, particularly the strengthening of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

      Two months after Roosevelt's death, Perkins resigned from the Cabinet, but she remained in government as a U.S. civil service commissioner until 1953. From then until her death, she lectured on the problems of labour and industry. In 1934 she published People at Work, and The Roosevelt I Knew, a record of her association with the late president, appeared in 1946.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Perkins, Frances — (1882 1965)    Born Fannie Coralie Perkins, Frances Perkins was a graduate in chemistry and physics of Mount Holyoke College and Columbia University. She taught from 1904 to 1907 and also worked in the Chicago Commons and Hull House settlements.… …   Historical Dictionary of the Roosevelt–Truman Era

  • Perkins, Frances — orig. Fannie Coralie Perkins (10 abr. 1882, Boston, Mass., EE.UU.–14 may. 1965, Nueva York, N.Y.). Funcionaria pública estadounidense. Fue asistente social en Nueva York y dirigente de instituciones cuyo propósito era mejorar las condiciones de… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Perkins,Frances — Per·kins (pûrʹkĭnz), Frances. 1882 1965. American social reformer and public official. As U.S. secretary of labor (1933 1945) she was the first woman to hold a cabinet position. * * * …   Universalium

  • Frances Coralie Perkins — Frances Perkins Frances Perkins (* 10. April 1882 in Boston, Massachusetts; † 14. Mai 1965 in New York[1]; geboren als Fanny Coralie Perkins) war eine US amerikanische Politikerin (Demokratische Partei), zwisc …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Frances Perkins — (* 10. April 1882 in Boston, Massachusetts; † 14. Mai 1965 in New York[1]; geboren als Fanny Coralie Perkins) war eine US amerikanische Politikerin (Demokrat …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Frances Perkins — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Perkins. Frances Perkins Portrait officiel de Frances Perkins, par Jean MacLane, accroché au Département du travail …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Frances Perkins — Infobox US Cabinet official name=Frances Coralie Perkins order=4th title=United States Secretary of Labor term start=1933 president=Franklin Delano Roosevelt Harry S. Truman term end=1945 predecessor=William N. Doak successor=Lewis B.… …   Wikipedia

  • Perkins — /perr kinz/, n. 1. Frances, 1882 1965, U.S. sociologist: Secretary of Labor 1933 45. 2. Maxwell (Evarts), 1884 1947, U.S. editor. * * * (as used in expressions) Gilman Charlotte Anna Perkins Stetson Perkins Anthony Perkins Frances Fannie Coralie… …   Universalium

  • Frances — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Frances est un prénom anglais (diminutif : Fran), équivalent du prénom français France. Sommaire 1 Personnalités …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Perkins — (as used in expressions) Gilman, Charlotte (Anna) Perkins (Stetson) Perkins, Anthony Perkins, Frances Fannie Coralie Perkins Perkins, Jacob Perkins, Maxwell (Evarts) …   Enciclopedia Universal

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